Tuesday, May 30, 2006

If you missed yesterdays stunning performance by Michael Schumacher in Ferrari at Monaco Grand prix, then you have lost the opportunity of seeing one of the most sedulous and inspiring performances from him. It was truly a checkered race for him.

Although he had secured the pole position on Saturday, he was stripped of his position and penalized for stalling other cars on the racing line during the critical last stages of the race during qualifying when others were trying the make the best use of last few minutes available for deciding the racing positions on Sunday.

I am not writing this to discuss whether Schumi did it deliberately or not. Neither am I interested in discussing whether the FIA junta was correct in punishing him by making him to start from the end of the grid even though he is perfectly capable of doing what he was accused of doing. Whatever it is I wanted to drive home the point as to why Ferrari are ready to pay millions of dollars extra in comparison to other drivers in F1 to make sure that he drives a Ferrari. Each of these manufactures spend millions of dollars to improve the speed of the car by 1/100th of a second year on year and there is this guy who can actually go half a second faster then the rest by his sheer determination and talent…. Don’t you think it’s a better investment?

The talent was in full display on Sunday when he had to start from the pit lane as the 22nd car on the grid but still managed to attain the fifth place. True that he got a lot of help from the safety car getting deployed when a car broke down on the track, but he was there to take advantage of this. If he hadn’t made 10 places during the course of time from 22nd to 12th he wouldn’t even be in a position to take the opportunity. Those who are familiar with the Monaco circuit will know how difficult it is to overtake there.

The race, which was virtually lost even before it actually started, was won on sheer determination and talent under circumstances where even a small error would have costed him dear.

The lesson to be learnt here is to never be torpid. Never to derogate from your aims and what you want from life even if the entire world is against you. The tables might turn anytime and you must be there to cash on it.

Thursday, May 18, 2006

I always wondered how these terrorist organizations flourish!!!Now I UNDERSTAND!!!

I never thought I would go to an extent where I would feel so strongly against any policy or ideals. Initially when I had seen RDB (Rang de Basanthi) I thought the protests and the eventual killing of the minister in the film was just hilarious!!! I never thought at any stage I would even think, that such incidents were remotely possible…I presumed the entire thing was just a farce. But then, you always tend to change the way you perceive things…Now I UNDERSTAND!!!

I always wondered why people would want to fund organizations that tend to do more harm than good…Why people would want to waste their hard earned money on things that might eventually lead to a big zilch?But Now I UNDERSTAND!!!

I Think I have just reached that stage!!! I feel so frustrated and disappointed at the way the government is bent upon bringing this quota system in all these premier institutions that I am now ready to even pay for all those protests!!!

Just imagine loosing out on a seat in an IIT / IIM to someone who belongs to the less privileged class/section of the society even though you had toped the rank lists and secured the highest…The pain is so much that it shows in the way the protests are being carried out all over the country…

I have to put in a word of praise here, for all the doctors who took the initiative of protesting against this ridiculous idea of reserving 50% seats in all the premier institutions…The very idea is bigoted and biased…

I understand that a huge percentage of population is underprivileged and will definitely need help. But bringing in more reservations is one of the worst solution. It will actually worsen the castism prevalent in the society, leading to more divisions…Further, increasing the number of seats to compensate for the quotas really doesn’t help if the colleges wont be able to maintain the ideal staff-student ratio. There are better methods of achieving this like providing better educational facilities during primary and secondary education or providing reservations in schools/colleges based on the income level etc…But they choose the easiest of all solutions which is also one of the best methods to gain votes and cover up all the wrongdoings that these politicians have done for the last 50 years!!!

It’s a shame that such chouse tactics are being used to succor the less privileged and raise the downtrodden. And we will be the ones who will feel the burnt of this!!!

Friday, May 12, 2006

Have you ever got drenched in rain??? I am sure you would have but very few of us would have actually loved it, the rest normally scoot for cover!!!

There are two ways of looking at rain: as a harbinger of excitement or a damn nuisance. If you are in the latter category then you are missing the romance in life!!! Do shun the loathsome abnegation for once. Go out, chill out and get drenched in rain without being shielded in any armor…

Have you ever enjoyed the bike ride when it’s raining? Try it once without whining about getting wet…It’s an experience that you will never forget. I sometimes sit reminiscing the bike ride I had during the Goa trip in spite of it raining cats and dogs. Its one of those amazing memories that I still cherish…

Either I haven’t grown up yet or I just want to disobey the doctrine that no mature person shall dally with the rain. But its better than staying indoors and sanctimoniously commenting on its utility value…Just go for a walk or go to the terrace when its raining and watch with awe and admiration as droplets of rain come and hit your face.

If you haven’t got drenched in rain then you are missing something. Its one of the most satisfying things…So the next time, RAIN GOD is on DUTY don't curse and scamper for cover. Say `wow' and jump for joy.

Tuesday, May 02, 2006

It was night and I could feel the cool breeze hitting my face. I could see the stars and enjoy the fresh air as we drove into the forest. It was a real pleasure, which left an indelible mark. It was as if this place had been bestowed upon us to experience heaven on earth. It was like riding in a picture-postcard, which made me wonder whether it was all a dream. Only the occasional honking of the vehicles and the constant pestering of my parents to slow down, reminded me that it was all too real.

Generally we leave Bangalore at around 4 AM in the morning so that we can reach Mangalore by 11. This helps us to avoid the morning traffic at Bangalore and its easier to navigate through the Western Ghats during daytime. This part of Western Ghats is popularly known as Shiradi ghats with an average elevation of a couple of thousand feet. It stretches for about 100 KM from Shaklespur to Uppinangadi, which is about 80 KM from Mangalore. Shakleshpur itself is about 200KM from Bangalore. Unlike the roads in Bangalore these are really good. You can travel the entire stretch within 3hrs in spite of stopping a couple of times in between. Once you reach Shaklespur its pure heaven. The drops are pretty steep but the views are nothing short of being spectacular. You can always hear the birds chirping along with the sounds of the small streams flowing right beside the road.

Even though we had driven to Mangalore many times, it’s never been during the nights. But this time because of my father who got delayed due to a meeting we had to leave Bangalore at 4.00 in the afternoon. My dad wanted to drive and I was all too willing as I was not all that keen driving on the chaotic Bangalore roads. He drove for about 80KM, which took us about 2hrs because of the huge traffic jams on the NH. Our city was making sure of living up to its reputation. Once we touched NH48 I took over. With the AC on full blast I was driving at an average speed of 80Kmph with the maximum touching 130Kmph. The road from Bangalore to Hassan is one of the best and roads are as straight as it can get. Once we reached Shakleshpur I thought the best was over. We had dinner and then took to the road again. That’s when I realized the pure bliss of driving through the forests during nights. If you want to see the forest go by day but if you want to hear it then go by night. We rolled down our windows to let the forest air takeover our car. It was an amazing experience driving through the hairpin curves with the forest around us providing the excellent background music. It was midnight by the time we reached Udupi but with a ride like that I was in no mood to sleep.

When was the last time we actually saw stars in Bangalore?

The maximum that we can expect to see is the Orion belt, with a few other stars. I don’t think I even need my toe’s to count their number. The other day we went to a hillock very near to my village. The setting sun was effulgent as ever. It was getting dark and my cousin’s left for home. I stayed back for some more time. I lied down on the rock with my face staring at the sky. The last time I had done this was exactly about a month back when I had come to this place along with my good old friend. We had then spent about an hour and I was surprised to see the sheer number of stars that was above us. I was actually amazed to see a couple of shooting stars, which I thought, existed only in theory. I had a wish for each one of them:). It remains to be seen how many of them actually gets fulfilled :).

This time too it was an unforgettable experience even though there were no shooting stars. The celestial view was just amazing. It made me feel so small and tiny. It was an ideal place for introspection. The only thing I could have asked more was some company to share this celestial spectacle. It was so good, only the fear of sitting alone on a rock in complete darkness compelled me to return back. The entire experience was something that you wont get in Bangalore even if you are ready to pay millions.